Tuesday, August 03, 2004

most of the classes start this week. this morning i went to an algebra class this morning - it is an introduction to abstract algebra, which is basically a review of an honors math class i already took, but didn´t really learn much in. so this should help solidify my knowledge of algebra.
on thursday, i went to another class - contemporary international conflicts. it´s a study of what has happened in the world since the formation of the united nations. i´m interested in a non-united-states perspective on the world, and this class will definitly provide it. it includes writing a paper about some conflict not covered by the class, so i can do a bit of research, maybe into sendero luminoso in peru or the continuing civil war in colombia.
i could understand the professors in both classes, so it looks like i will take them and not be lost in the language.

the family is cool - i had a ten year old, umm, host niece, i guess, for the past week, but now she has to go back to school in a different city about an hour south of here - she lives with her mom, and her parents are separated, her dad being my host brother. it was interesting to have her around - i even taught her how to play the supersheep training exercise of worms. i also watched a bootleg of shrek 2 (yes, filmed in the theatre) with her.

i´m learning my way around the city, with only 2 erroneous bus trips so far. i live about 35 minutes from downtown, about an hour during rush hour though. it´s not a problem, just makes getting places take a little longer. i don´t mind - i get to sit and read.

well, i´m going to go eat now, and later go to my mandatory spanish class. hopefully they don´t make us work too hard . . .

2 comments:

my friend michelle has a bunch of bootleg tapes from iraq. they too were recorded in the theater. im done in urbana going to a job interview today. fun times. so why do you call the host family your brother and niece. how old are they? is it some sort of egalitarian thing? muah haha. some how i doubt it. maybe though. alright well good luck in classes. man i would be scared to be taking classes in another language. post some pictures if you ever have time. i guess you might not. later~mo